Mr. Speaker, I rise on the same point of order. I listened with great interest to the hon. member from Carleton.

The NDP is also concerned about the abusive use of omnibus bills that we have been seeing from this government over the past two years, despite the promises that it made. As a result, we have an interest in speaking to this point of order. I simply want to tell you that we will do so as soon as possible.

Office of the Department of National Defence and Canadian Forces OmbudsmanRoutine Proceedings

12:25 p.m.

Saint-Jean
Québec

Liberal

Jean RiouxLiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, two copies of the 2016-17 annual report of the Office of the Department of National Defence and Canadian Forces Ombudsman.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition calling upon Parliament to permit Christians to exercise their religious beliefs and conscience rights, both in their private and public acts, without coercion, restraint, or discrimination, by amending section 241 of the Criminal Code, and to enact a policy to provide a review of any new legislation that may be brought forward by the government to ensure it does not impinge upon the religious rights of Christians, in accordance with the Canadian Bill of Rights and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

With regard to the government’s plan to legalize marijuana: (a) will it be a violation of the Criminal Code for 18 or 19 year old students to bring marijuana to high school; and (b) what specific measures is the government taking to prevent the usage of marijuana by high school students?

Mr. Speaker, with regard to part (a), the Government of Canada’s position is clear: youth should not have any amount of cannabis. Under Bill C-45, there would be no legal means for a young person under 18 years of age to obtain recreational cannabis. C-45 would also, for the first time, make it a criminal offence to sell cannabis to a minor and create significant penalties for those who engage youth in related offences.

As such, if a person is convicted of selling or distributing cannabis or possessing it for the purpose of sale or distribution, in or near a school, on or near school grounds, or in or near any other public place usually frequented by young persons under 18 years of age, such would be an aggravating factor that the court must consider upon sentencing of the individual.

Furthermore, under the proposed cannabis act, provinces and territories, under their own authorities, would be able to set additional restrictions and local requirements related to cannabis. Additionally, school boards would continue to have the ability to set their own policies in relation to the possession of cannabis on school grounds.

With regard to part (b), protecting the health and safety of Canadians is a top priority for our government. This commitment recognizes that the current approach to cannabis is not working. In 2015, the highest use of cannabis in Canada was among youth, 21%, and young adults, 30%.

The proposed cannabis act contains a number of specific provisions designed to help keep cannabis out of the hands of children.

The cannabis act would establish serious criminal penalties with maximum sentences of 14 years in jail for those who sell or provide cannabis to young persons under the age of 18 years, and new offences and strict penalties for those who exploit youth to commit a cannabis offence. The provinces and territories would have the flexibility to raise the minimum age should they wish to do so.

The law would prohibit advertising, sponsorships, endorsements, or other forms of promotion that might encourage young people to use cannabis, and serious penalties for those who break the law, especially those who advertise to youth. The cannabis act, like the Tobacco Act, would also prohibit any products, promotion, packaging, or labelling that could be appealing to youth. The government would moreover be allowed to make regulations that would require such things as childproof packaging and a universal THC symbol.

Penalties for violating these prohibitions would include a fine of up to $5 million or three years in jail or both The government has been regularly engaging with provinces and territories to encourage them to create administrative offences, a ticketing regime, to prohibit youth from possessing any amount of cannabis, similar to what is now done for alcohol and tobacco. This approach would provide police with the authority to seize cannabis from youth with small amounts.

In addition, the government is undertaking a broad public education campaign to inform Canadians of all ages about the new proposed legislation, including the penalties for providing cannabis to youth, and the risks involved with consuming cannabis. This public education campaign is focused on helping young Canadians make the best possible choices about their future and will help them to understand the risks and consequences of, for example, driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. To that end, the government has committed, through budget 2017, $9.6 million to public education and awareness to inform Canadians, particularly young people, of the risks of cannabis use, as well as surveillance activities. The government will monitor patterns of and perceptions around cannabis use amongst Canadians, especially youth, on an annual basis through the Canadian Cannabis Survey to inform and refine public education and awareness activities and to mitigate the risks and harms of use. This public education and awareness campaign will be a continuing priority for the government.

With regard to lifetime non-disclosure orders for employees of the Privy Council Office, since January 1, 2016: (a) how many employees were subject to lifetime non-disclosure orders; (b) what are the titles of each employee subject to such an order; and (c) what is the maximum penalty for breaking the lifetime non-disclosure order?

Mr. Speaker, since January 1, 2016, 79 employees of the Privy Council Office have been permanently bound to secrecy under the Security of Information Act. The maximum penalty for contravention of the act is no more than 14 years in prison. With regard to the titles of each employee subject to such an order, this information cannot be provided. In processing parliamentary returns, the government applies the principles of the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act and this information has been withheld on these grounds for security reasons.

With regard to government expenditures and payments for out of court legal settlements: (a) what is the total amount paid out between June 15, 2017, and July 15, 2017; (b) how many payments were made during the time period referred to in (a); and (c) what is the largest single payment made during the time period referred to in (a)?

With regard to the new citizenship guide from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada titled “Discover Canada”: (a) why were the warnings against female genital mutilation removed; (b) why were the warnings against honour killings removed; (c) what specific actions is the government taking to ensure that new Canadians are made aware that female genital mutilation and honour killings have no place in Canadian society; and (d) what is the title of the individual who made the decision to remove the warnings in (a) and (b) from the citizenship guide?

Mr. Speaker, with regard to parts (a) and (b), there is no new citizenship study guide, therefore no content has been added or removed.

The citizenship study guide is being revised to produce a product that is balanced, accessible to all readers, and reflects Canada’s diversity. It will cover subject matter that would be included in the citizenship test that applicants take when they apply for citizenship, as outlined in the citizenship regulations.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada is consulting a wide range of stakeholders over the next several months to ensure the revised content of the guide represents all Canadians, including women, indigenous peoples, LGBTQ2 individuals, minority populations, francophones, and Canadians with disabilities.

As consultations progress, the content of the guide continues to evolve to incorporate ongoing feedback. As such, given the new guide is still under development, the content to date should not be considered final or complete.

With regard to part (c), the revised citizenship study guide will highlight the importance of Canada’s democratic institutions and principles. It will emphasize the importance of obeying the law as a responsibility of citizenship and that gender-based violence is illegal. It will be representative of all Canadians and their rights, including women, minority populations, francophones, Canadians with disabilities, and indigenous peoples, as recommended by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

With regard to the proposed tax increases for small businesses announced by the Minister of Finance on July 18, 2017: (a) prior to the announcement, what consultations, if any, were done with the Canadian Medical Association regarding the proposed tax increases; (b) what studies has the government conducted on the impact of the tax increases on doctors, particularly in rural areas; (c) broken down by province, what is current estimated number of doctors per capita; and (d) broken down by province, what does the government anticipate will be the projected number of doctors per capita in (i) 2018, (ii) 2019, (iii) 2020, (iv) 2021, if the tax increases are implemented?

Mr. Speaker, when analyzing the tax system, the department relies on a range of approaches and information sources to develop an in-depth understanding of potential issues, including the statistical analysis of tax return data, the monitoring of the tax literature, and consultations with the Canada Revenue Agency, academics, tax professionals, and other stakeholders.

When the analysis identifies a need for action, the department develops options and assesses these options against a range of criteria, such as their impact on the fairness of the tax system, on economic efficiency, and on the ease of administration of the tax system.

This process was followed in the development of the three proposals that were unveiled on July 18, 2017. Draft legislation was also released for two of the proposals and stakeholders were invited to comment on the proposals and the draft legislation. Feedback was received from many Canadians, including small business owners, doctors, professionals, and farmers and fishers. The department consulted with the Canadian Medical Association prior to July 18 on tax planning strategies involving the multiplication of the small business deduction, which have interactions with the strategies addressed in the July 18 consultation paper.

On October 16, 2017, the Government announced that the small business tax rate would be reduced to 10% as of January 1, 2018, and then to 9% as of January 1, 2019. To support this tax reduction, the Government also announced that it would be moving forward with its plan to ensure that private corporations are not used to obtained unintended tax benefits.

The department does not prepare estimates of the number of physicians in Canada. Such information can be obtained from the Canadian Institute for Health Information and the Canadian Medical Association.

With regard to the attendance by officials from the Department of Finance to the Liberal caucus retreat in Kelowna, British Columbia in September, 2017: (a) what information was presented to the Liberal caucus; (b) how many officials attended the retreat and what are their titles; and (c) what are all travel costs related to the retreat incurred by the Department of Finance, including (i) total cost, (ii) accommodation, (iii) meals and per diems, (iv) airfare, (v) other expenses?

With regard to meetings and correspondence between the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, or his office and Dream Unlimited Corporation, formerly known as Dundee Developments, since November 5, 2015: (a) what are the details of all meetings including (i) date, (ii) location, (iii) participants, (iv) topics or agenda items, (v) file number of any related briefing material and; and (b) what are the details of all correspondence including (i) date, (ii) sender, (iii) recipient, (iv) file number, (v) title, (vi) topic?

Mr. Speaker, with regard to meetings and correspondence between the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, or his office, and Dream Unlimited Corporation, formerly known as Dundee Developments, since November 5, 2015, Infrastructure Canada has nothing to report.

With regard to the consultations led by the Minister of International Development and La Francophonie on renewing Canada’s international assistance: (a) what is the total of expenses incurred for the consultations, including the breakdown by (i) cost of airfare, (ii) cost of food and beverages, (iii) cost of accommodations, (iv) cost of travel expenses, (v) cost of photos, (vi) details of each contract or expenditure, (vii) supplier, (viii) amount, (ix) contract details and length, (x) date, (xi) number of photos or images purchased, (xii) where the photos or images were used (internet, bulletin boards, etc.), (xiii) advertising campaign description, (xiv) contract file number; (b) what is the total of exempt political staff expenditures, broken down by (i) cost of airfare, (ii) cost of food and beverages, (iii) cost of accommodations; (c) what is the total number of consultations, broken down by (i) number of individuals, (ii) number of organizations, (iii) number of countries; (d) who was on the delegation, other than reporters and security personnel; (e) what was the title of each member of the delegation; (f) what were the contents of the Minister’s itinerary; (g) what are the details of each meeting attended by the Minister during this trip, including (i) date, (ii) summary or description, (iii) attendees, including the organizations and the list of their representatives, (iv) topics discussed, (v) location; and (h) what are the details of all agreements signed during this trip?

Mr. Speaker, with regard to parts (a), (b), (d), (e), (f), and (g), no international assistance review, IAR, allocation was created by the department. Teams at headquarters and at missions abroad absorbed the consultation costs within their respective budgets.

GAC undertook an extensive preliminary search in order to determine the amount of information that would fall within the scope of the question and the amount of time that would be required to prepare a comprehensive response. The information requested is not systematically tracked in a centralized database. GAC concluded that producing and validating a comprehensive response to this question would require a manual collection of information that is not possible in the time allotted and could lead to the disclosure of incomplete and misleading information.

With regard to part (c), for details regarding the total number of completed consultations, please refer to the following link:

Kevin LamoureuxLiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons

Furthermore, if a revised response to Question No. 1045, originally tabled on June 25, 2017, and the government's responses to Questions Nos. 1122 to 1124, 1129 to 1132, 1135 to 1137, 1139 to 1143, and 1145 to 1147 could be made orders for return, these returns would be tabled immediately.